To cite a concrete example, a family-owned business may strain relations among three children with varying degrees of involvement or interest, according to Michael Wargon, a trust and estates attorney who works with high net worth clients as a partner in the Boca Raton, Florida-based office of Day Pitney. At the same time, that business "is very often a major source of wealth for a family," he pointed out. Transferring a minority interest or other partial stake to a trust can preserve more planning options ...

Halfpoint/Shutterstock Benjamin Franklin famously wrote that nothing is certain except death and taxes. But there's a twist: The federal and state governments can still levy taxes on Americans’ assets after they die: estate taxes. And as USA Today warns, that can affect how much your beneficiaries inherit (1). Must Read The federal estate tax threshold is quite high — $15 million in 2026 — so most people won't have to worry about it (2). But as USA Today notes, some states have much lower thresholds. ...